Friday, February 29, 2008

Susan Fletcher has received many awards and other recognition for her books, including the American Library Association Notable Books for Young Readers, American Library Association Best Books for Young Adults, the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books Blue Ribbon, School Library Journal Best Books, and two Oregon Book Awards. She also was a finalist for the Western Writers of America Spur Award. Anita Loughrey interviewed her in November 2008, as one of the speakers at the SCBWI Bologna Conference 2008 (scheduled for March 29 and March 30 in Bologna, Italy).

Did you always want to be a writer?

SF: I've wanted to be a writer since I was in third grade. That's when reading got easy enough that I didn't have to actually think about it--I could just dive down into a story and live it. Third grade was also when I began to understand that there is music in words. One day, our teacher demonstrated on the blackboard that it just didn't sound right to have every sentence in a paragraph begin with the exact same word. Now I realize that there are exceptions to this, but that day I got for the first time that the rhythms and sounds of words matter. I'd been taking piano lessons and making up my own songs on the side, just for fun. Now I started playing with words in the same way.

What other jobs have you had that led to being a writer?

SF: I waited tables while in college, and then, after graduation, worked at an advertising agency buying television time. These jobs didn't lead to my becoming a writer by building up useful skills or giving me useful ideas. But I was pretty miserable at work, and I realized that if I was ever going to be happy in my working life, I was going to have to overcome my fear of rejection and just start writing.

I got a copywriting job at the agency, and then went on to freelance magazine articles. But when I wrote my first book for children, I knew I'd found work I loved.

What are you working on at the moment?

SF: Right now I'm working on another dragon novel, one that's connected to but very different from my Dragon Chronicles. I'm calling it a "companion" to the earlier series.

If you could be a character from one of your books who would it be and why this particular character?

SF: Well, that's a tough one, because I always try to make things hard for my characters. I give them experiences that I, personally, would not like to undergo.

But possibly I would most like to be Kara, from Flight of the Dragon Kyn, or Marjan, from Shadow Spinner--not because of what happens to them in the story, but because they might have meaningful work to do after the story is over.

Not that raising a family isn't meaningful; I think that raising my daughter was the most important thing I've done in my life--far more important than writing my books. But having this other work, this work that I love, apart from the family work, is just so satisfying.

Kara could be a falconer. Mitra could be a pigeon keeper and a storyteller. They could find refuge and usefulness in their work.

How has your childhood influenced what you write?

SF: It's probably influenced me more deeply than I yet understand! But on a rather superficial level, I'm attracted to writing about things I loved as a child. We had birds and dogs as pets--it seems we always had a pet. I do love animals, and I love to write about them. Even my dragons are influenced by my pets, past and present.

Also, I'm the oldest of four children, and I often find myself drawn to write about an older child protecting or taking care of a younger one. Not that I was such a great older sister! But it's a place I often go to in my writing.

What was your favorite book as a child or adolescent?

SF: As a child, my favorite book for years was A Wrinkle in Time. I don't think I fell that hard for another book until I encountered Anna Karenina late in high school.

Is there a book already published that you wish you had written? Why?

SF: To Kill a Mockingbird. It's hard for me to say why I've chosen this book above all others--because there are lots of books I wish I'd written. There are so many things I love about To Kill a Mockingbird, too many to mention here.

But probably the most important thing is that I love the characters so much. They've become part of who I am, as real to me as beloved friends who have moved away and might call or visit at any time.

How long does it take you to write a book?

SF: My first novel took a year and a half, and it's taken progressively longer and longer with each successive book. My last novel, Alphabet of Dreams, took five years. Ouch! Why? I seem to be doing more research. And also, in more recent years, teaching and school visits have taken lots of my time.

What is the hardest part of writing for you?

SF: The hardest part is getting the first draft down. It feels like fog to me at that point--my characters unformed, the landscape whited out, the shapes of the characters' journeys shrouded. Once I get the shape of things, I can come back and bring it to life.

Do you work with the television, radio, or stereo on? In cafes, nursing a half-cup of lukewarm tea, or in isolation?

SF: Usually, I work in silence, when I can. I have an upstairs studio, and I don't turn on the music when I write. Sometimes, when I'm stuck, I take my laptop to a coffee shop; for some reason, café noises don't usually interfere.

How much do you think a writer needs to market him/herself/the work? What do you suggest?

SF: It does seem to me that we have to do more marketing than we used to. In the old days, school budgets were higher, and school librarians read the reviews and selected books from review journals. So all you needed was a couple of good reviews, and you would do okay.

Now, a lot of the sales have shifted over to bookstores, and they need brisk turnover to justify a book's presence on the shelves.

I'm not very good at marketing, and I don't really know what works. I finally got my website up, and I have fun updating it. I put in material for kids, teachers, and book group leaders.

Beyond the website, I send out postcards to children's bookstores and to other relevant venues. For my recent picture book (Dadblamed Union Army Cow), for instance, I sent postcards and/or letters to American Civil War historical sites. I also accept lots of invitations to signings and school visits.

I find that promotion takes time out from the actual writing, so I'm loath to spend too awfully much time on it. Also, for my two books that have sold the best, I did little or no marketing. But I realize that it's necessary in today's world. I'd definitely welcome suggestions from someone who knows more about this than I do.

Do you have a blog, and if so, how often do you blog? Do you get lots of feedback from readers?

SF: No, I don't blog. Maybe I will someday, but not now. (How do people find the time to blog?)

Can you share your favorite fan mail, if you have one?

SF: My favorite was a handwritten letter from a sixth grader from Texas. He told me that ever since he'd read Dragon's Milk, he'd been looking for a green-eyed girl. (In my books, green-eyed people can communicate with dragons.) "Some have come close," he wrote, "but not close enough." He said he'd gone to the library looking for the Bok of Dragon (a made-up title mentioned in my novel) but neither he nor the librarian had been able to find it. He asked me if my character Granmyr was a real person, because I'd put part of a letter Granmyr had written at the top of one of the chapters.

I just loved that he went looking for traces and artifacts of the world of Dragon's Milk in his world! I kind of hope he felt about my characters the way I feel about the characters in To Kill a Mockingbird--that they were friends who had just gone away for a while and might call or visit at any moment.

Cynsational Notes

Anita Loughrey writes teacher resources and children's non-fiction. Her books have been published by A&C Black, Hopscotch and Brilliant Publications. She also writes regular features for Writers' Forum in the U.K. about authors and the writing industry. She recently interviewed all 31 speakers for 2008's Bologna Conference.The SCBWI Bologna 2008 interview series is brought to you by the SCBWI Bologna Biennial Conference in conjunction with Cynsations.

BC: All Harry Potter books because they have done so much for promoting children's literacy.

How long does it take you to write a book?

BC: About half an hour for some and six months for others--it depends on the book.

What is the hardest part of writing for you?

BC: Getting someone to look after my horses so I have time to work on my books.

Do you work with the television, radio, or stereo on? In cafés, nursing a half-cup of lukewarm tea or in isolation?

BC: I need to be completely isolated and very quiet with no interruptions.

How do you divide your time between working on your stud farm, competing in your side-saddle team, writing, illustrating and doing author/illustrator events and workshops?

BC: With great difficulty and little sleep.

Are any more of your books being made into films or adapted for television?

BC: Princess Smartypants and a further Doctor Dog series are in the offing.

Your fiction and illustrations have been described as quirky, goofy, zany and anarchic. How would you describe them?

BC: True to type.

What destinations have you traveled to, to research your books?

BC: Okavango Delta in Botswana, a lot of influence from the West Indies,Australia, and most importantly, the depths of my imagination.

How much do you think a writer needs to market his/herself/the work? What do you suggest?

BC: In the present climate of the times, it is most important that writers market themselves. A good website is essential.

Do you have a blog, and if so, how often do you blog? Do you get lots of feedback from readers?

BC: I don't have a blog but I have a good website where people put forward questions that I answer.

Can you share your favorite fan mail, if you have one?

BC: My most favorite fan mail was from a lady whose daughter was suffering from cancer and had had chemotherapy, hence she had no hair. She wrote me a lovely letter saying how much the hairy book had helped her daughter. The last pages, reading:

"Hairy Big and Hairy Small, I'm glad I have no hair at all."

I was so pleased that my book gave comfort to this little girl.

Cynsational Notes

Anita Loughrey writes teacher resources and children's non-fiction. Her books have been published by A&C Black, Hopscotch and Brilliant Publications. She also writes regular features for Writers' Forum in the U.K. about authors and the writing industry. She recently interviewed all 31 speakers for 2008's Bologna Conference.The SCBWI Bologna 2008 interview series is brought to you by the SCBWI Bologna Biennial Conference in conjunction with Cynsations.

I own every issue of the Wonder Woman comic published since about 1973. At a time when girls (at least in suburban Kansas City) were still told to "let the boys win" and "don't let people know you're smart," Wonder Woman was as strong as Superman, as smart as Batman, and had really kicky boots. She also emphasized the importance of relationships between women as opposed to being defined by a man. Note: I subscribe to about 100 comics a month.

When I was in elementary school, I would practice signing my name on the off-chance that someday people would want my autograph. I have no idea why. Despite my wonderful fictional role model (above), I was fairly insecure as a child. In any case, it was a very complicated signature that took a long time. Oddly enough, I do autograph books now, but in a much speedier and less fancy manner. Note: maybe it was one of those dream-it, achieve-it things.

I have seen "Star Wars: A New Hope" more than 350 times (paid admission) in movie theaters. Granted, it played at my local dollar theater for what seemed like years, but nevertheless, I was in love--not only with the story but storytelling. I studied all of the behind-the-scenes books for hours on end.

I do a great vocal impression of Kermit the Frog. I'm hesitant to admit this because it may prompt pleas to illustrate this rare and lovely talent. So, please be advised that I do so only at my discretion, usually unexpectedly, and when properly motivated. That said, it is fairly hysterical, if I do say so myself.

My first car was a red 1967 Mustang Coupe, which I totaled in an ice storm on my way home from college finals. I distinctly remember thinking that if I died after doing all that work, I'd be really annoyed.

One summer when I worked at my local movie theater, a man with a gun broke in and stole our copy of "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom." I wasn't there, but it still seemed quite exciting at the time. Back then, there were fewer theaters, and we fielded all the major new releases. Lines flowed out the building. News crews came to film the crowds. I have probably popped more corn than anyone you'll ever meet. Note: check out the website and trailer for "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull."

I studied law abroad one summer in in Paris and stayed at a dorm for American students that was located across the street from Luxembourg Garden. While I was there, I shot more than 30 rolls of film. I have only returned to Paris once, on a vacation with Greg in 2000. However, it remains one of my favorite cities.

When I got married in Kansas City, my wedding cake was topped by a crystal daisy. (Gerbera daisies are my favorite flowers). The groom's cake was topped with a model of The Starship "Enterprise."

My phobias are heights, enclosed spaces, germs, big water, children under three, and lettuce. With the kids, I'm afraid that I'll drop them on their heads. Someone told me once that it takes a while for the skull to fuse together, and I've been nervous about it ever since. With regard to the water, I saw "Jaws" at an impressionable age (and was raised in the heartland, far from the seas). So far as the lettuce is concerned, it's really more about what might be lurking in the lettuce.

Of the U.S. Presidents, I have met Gerald Ford and Bill Clinton. I met Ford when I was a child in Vail, Colorado, and Clinton at a political fund-raiser in Iowa City.

I am very proactive about doing real-world research for my fantasies. When I was working on Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007), I shot tons of film of South Congress as well as Austin's Bouldin Creek and Fairview neighborhoods and the hike-and-bike trail along Ladybird Lake. I also approached several people and asked if I could take their photos to use as models because I thought they looked like vampires or shape shifters. Everyone I spoke with was thrilled.

Hands-down, the most enthusiastic supporter of my books in my family (other than Greg) is my aunt Linda. She's a world traveler and has taken numerous photos for me to use for reference and presentations.

My favorite quirky and unexpected moment of 2007 was standing in line for a men's restroom at the White House with Holly Black (pictured)(the women's was closed). We were at a breakfast in celebration of the National Book Festival.

DS: I loved books, and so I worked my way into publishing. But my first experience with children's publishing was at Farrar, Straus and Giroux. That's where I recognized that I loved children's books and had a strong connection to the books I read as a child.

In your opinion, what makes a good art director?

DS: A good art director is able to guide an artist through the process of making a book by offering great feedback, encouragement, advice, sound judgment, enthusiasm, honesty, and sometimes, love. Appreciating and understanding an artist's work gives that artist a great sense of confidence to create their best work.

What makes an artist's illustrations stand out for you?

DS: Illustrations always stand out for me if they make me feel something or provoke a response: laughter, sadness, joy, insight. I love artwork that expresses life in distilled moments.

Do you think a website is a useful tool for illustrators to showcase their work? How often do you look at a portfolio online?

DS: I think websites are great for artists, and I would encourage anyone who is starting out (and established artists, for that matter) to think about setting up a site. I look at websites every day and find them incredibly helpful.

What kinds of things can turn you off of a portfolio?

DS: Portfolios that are uneven are distressing, meaning that there's a mix of good work but too much that's not up to par. I'm not a fan of gimmicky portfolios either: let the work speak for itself.

What do you believe is the most important part of your job?

DS: Encouraging and developing talent.

What is your favorite thing about being an art director?

DS: Helping talented artists make great books that we're both proud of and knowing that the result will have an impact on a child's life.

Do you make suggestions for revisions to art work? What sort of suggestions have you made and how, in your opinion, how have they improved the final product?

DS: I do make suggestions on revising artwork. I can't solve problems of technique, but I can offer opinions and suggestions that might spur an artist to improve something.

How would you go about matching an illustrator to an author?

DS: I read the story first, sometimes many times; then I think about my own emotional response to the words and imagine how a particular illustrator might interpret those words.

What are some of your favorite children’s books and why?

DS: I loved Alice in Wonderland very much when I was eight-years old: it made me laugh and I loved memorizing the verse parts and reciting them for my family. To my mind, the John Tenniel drawings are the work of a genius. And, like many children, I wept after reading Charlotte's Web. I couldn't believe that she died!What book(s) are you proudest of having worked on?

DS: I'm very proud of having launched the GRAPHIX imprint of graphic novels for Scholastic in 2005. I think there's tremendous talent in this area, and I'm so excited to bring great narrative and character-driven comics to kids. And there are many, many individual books that I've been very proud to have worked on, though I have to say that working on the Harry Potter books has been a wonderful experience.

Is there an area on your list that you would like to grow at this time?

DS: Graphic novels for children.

What is the ideal art sample submission?

DS: I suppose one could say the best sample is one that leads to a book being made.

How involved in the marketing of the book(s) are you? What is the average marketing budget for a picture book at your house?

DS: I see the marketing plans for my books and sometimes offer opinions, but mostly I leave that to the marketing group who knows what they're doing much more than I do. Our budgets vary so much from book to book that I couldn’t say what the average budget is.

Cynsational Notes

Anita Loughrey writes teacher resources and children's non-fiction. Her books have been published by A&C Black, Hopscotch and Brilliant Publications. She also writes regular features for Writers' Forum in the U.K. about authors and the writing industry. She recently interviewed all 31 speakers for 2008's Bologna Conference.

The SCBWI Bologna 2008 interview series is brought to you by the SCBWI Bologna Biennial Conference in conjunction with Cynsations.

Are you a writer as well as an illustrator and, if so, which comes first, the images or the words?

PZ: My writing has mostly been adaptation, as of fairy tales, but whether or not that qualifies me as a writer, the words always come first for me. That is, a good story will provide me with everything I need to know to come up with its illustrations.

Do you have favorite medium you work in? If so, did the medium choose you or did you choose it? Can you elaborate?

PZ: To continue this theme, the story will begin by telling me what medium to work in. Some mediums give me an easier time than others, but I try not to let my wish to make it easier for myself get in the way of illustrating the particular text. I've done more books in oil paints than any one other medium, but I like to think that I play the field.

What is the hardest thing about being an author-illustrator for you?

PZ: Realizing that I have no legitimate basis for any sort of complaint. I've been extremely lucky. Come to me privately if you really need to hear me bemoan things, and I'll be happy to comply.

What made you decide to be a children's book illustrator?

PZ: I went to Yale, where the academic ethos looked very disapprovingly at courses with physical application--art just squeaked by as a defensible subject because of its claims to intellectual rigor--and, in the midst of this, I saw one day a seminar to be offered on the subject of picture books, making them as well as learning their history. It was going to be team taught, one teacher being Maurice Sendak. I got into this course and felt tremendously at home with the subject, because in fact I'd never lost my interest in picture books, even though I had never even considered them as a career choice.

I collaborated with another student on several picture book projects, which we mailed to various publishers, and a couple of which almost got picked up. But my already-set plan was to major in art and then become a painter supporting myself by college teaching (it was the example in front of me). So I went ahead and got my MFA in painting at the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia (with one of my two years in Rome), and briefly taught college art, in San Diego, but realized at this point that I was not meant to be a teacher, and probably was meant to illustrate children's books. So I moved to New York and started up with my portfolio.

What were your other career choices, if any?

PZ: Different possibilities at different ages: architect, painter; at one point in college, I was even considering physicist, because I was so fascinated by the way physics explains the world.

Do you have a favorite children's book that you wish you had written and/or illustrated? Why?

PZ: I have huge admiration for a lot of children's books, and I wish I could do many of the things that other illustrators do, but I'm not sure I wish to have been the one to make any particular book that I love. Examples: many of the books by William Steig, Sendak's books, Margaret Wise Brown and several of her illustrators.

How far ahead do you work? Six months, a year? Longer?

PZ: I work by the seat of my pants. Trying to work long in advance, but often failing.

What does your workspace look like?

PZ: At the moment it's in pretty good shape--there are some empty surfaces, and the couch is available for sitting. My studio is a studio apartment in Brooklyn, a five-minute walk from the apartment where I live with my wife, and it's also our guest room if I don't need to be there late at night or early in the morning.

Besides the bed and the couch, I have one large drawing table (which I got from Lane Smith when he was moving out of New York City) and tables along one wall filled with equipment—copier, large printer, scanner, computer, light table--and a lot of things on shelves.

What's on your wall over your desk or drawing table?

PZ: The window. I look out on a beautiful churchyard, where children play in good weather. Off to the side of my drawing table, the one wall that isn't covered with shelves has tools hanging from hooks, a bulletin board that I rarely look at, and a long stretch of wall where I've set up a system of poles hanging from the picture moulding with pegs sticking out of them. This is a system I set up two books ago. I mount the paper that will become my finished art on pieces of cardboard with holes that fit on the pegs, so I can fill the wall with the art, in the order of the book, and easily take pieces down to work on them and put them back up. Right now, the poles are there, but no art is on them yet.

How has your childhood influenced your illustrations and writing?

PZ: I was a big one for drawing when I was little; undoubtedly, I inherited it from my mother, who was a medical illustrator. I got plenty of encouragement for my creative endeavors, both at home and at school, where being able to draw was at least a little of a social boon, at least up until adolescence. More than that, I still remember pretty well the feelings of my childhood, which are what I draw on when I'm fleshing out the images for books.

Do you work with the television, radio, or stereo on? In cafés, nursing a half-cup of lukewarm tea, or in isolation?

PZ: I don't work much outside of my studio (when I do, it's at the dining table). I can't work with music playing, but I can with talk radio, which I used to have going always.

When I first started illustrating, there were about four radio stations in New York that had interesting enough talk to listen to, but now there is only the National Public Radio station. I still listen to that sometimes, and even though I could probably listen on my computer to stations all over the world, I haven't really tried to figure that out.

I often work in silence now. I thought the difficulty with music was a weirdness of my own, and I've been pleasantly surprised to find that many other illustrators and painters share this quality.

Do you have a blog or website to showcase your work, and if so, how often do you blog? Do you get lots of feedback from readers? Has it proved to be useful?

PZ: I have a website, with one page for each of my recent books, but I haven't gone back and created pages for all of them. There's a lot more than that on my site, but I don't blog or even include in my website a way to contact me. Maybe this is a mistake, but I'm too afraid of what I get some of anyway: messages from kids in school, or even in graduate education programs, who have an assignment relating to me, and are basically asking me to do it for them. I have a hard enough time with my actual work.

Is it difficult to illustrate somebody else’s writing? Has it ever caused any problems?

PZ: It's not difficult at all. I've been lucky enough to be presented with stories by some amazing writers. This means that the worlds they've created are wonderful, enticing, and very clearly delineated--you can tell what the pictures should look and feel like. Who wrote the story is immaterial. I feel the same whether it was me or someone else. My charge is to be faithful to the story.

Could you talk us through the process of how, after you are presented with a book a publisher would like you to illustrate, you generate your ideas for illustrating that book?

PZ: If I like the manuscript enough, it will tell me what to do with it. A picture book story may not appear to me in imaginary pictures--most often it doesn't--but it may start by feeling right only with a particular size and shape as a trim size. Some mediums would be patently wrong, and probably one seems best. Tight and realistic pictures, or loose and cartoonish? A deep space or a flat space?

I go looking through the history of art if I need inspiration. Mrs. Lovewright, for example, took me to Max Beckmann's early paintings as a touchstone. Clearly my fairy tales took me to Renaissance art.

Another key source for the drawings comes in the act of dividing a text into pages. This form of editing establishes the pacing of the book—its rhythm, its high and low points, the emotional impact of the page turns, and it sets a choice of subject matter for each spread.

What I do, though, is really very intuitive. I do most of my thinking about it later.

I love The Wheels on the Bus pop-up book [scroll and click for animated version]. Do you have to go through a different process to produce novelty books? If so, would you describe the differences? For example, how was the dummy different from a straight-illustration book?

PZ: Thanks for that. The process of making a pop-up book is somewhat different from making what the pop-up world calls a "flat book." It has more stages: between the planning, sketching stage and the finished-art-making stage comes a stage of mechanical development.

For Wheels, and much more so for Knick-Knack Paddywhack! I worked with a paper engineer and had a great time fiddling with pull-tabs and paper machinery, and at the end of that process we had the book broken into all its component pieces, which had to be painted separately so they could be printed as a mass of parts, which will get punched out and assembled by hand. Most of a movable book's art (in the word's industrial definition as anything that gets scanned for printing—my art training still makes me recoil at using the word art so freely) doesn't look like the pictures in the book, as it does for a flat book.

This makes the act of illustrating a pop-up book a bit less artistically rewarding, but it does keep you in mind of the fact that the painting you may be making isn't what really counts--the finished art (in the other sense of "art") is actually the book.

What are you currently working on?

PZ: Illustrations for two sequels: to Toys Go Out, a chapter book by Emily Jenkins--the new book is called Toy Dance Party, and to Swamp Angel by Anne Isaacs--the new picture book is called Dust Devil, with some sort of subtitle explaining that Dust Devil is Swamp Angel's horse. Respectively, pencil drawings, and oil on wood.

If you were to illustrate yourself, what would you look like? (please feel free to draw yourself--animal, plant, mineral!)

PZ: Ay! Even though they say that everything you draw is in some respect a self-portrait, and even though I admit that more than a few of the characters I've come up with (such as the guitar player in Wheels on the Bus) may look like me, what I really like about illustrating is that it's like acting: you get out of yourself and into something else. At least you can think you're doing that.

If you could be a character from one of your illustrations who would you like to be and why?

PZ: I could choose any number of characters, most of whom are not skinny and seem to be very content. In The Story of Mrs. Lovewright and Purrless, her Cat, I'd like to be the minor character Dylan, for whom the cat will purr. In Knick-Knack Paddywhack!, I'd choose to be Old Man 4. But in another sense, I become every character that I draw.

Cynsational Notes

Anita Loughrey writes teacher resources and children's non-fiction. Her books have been published by A&C Black, Hopscotch and Brilliant Publications. She also writes regular features for Writers' Forum in the U.K. about authors and the writing industry. She recently interviewed all 31 speakers for 2008's Bologna Conference.The SCBWI Bologna 2008 interview series is brought to you by the SCBWI Bologna Biennial Conference in conjunction with Cynsations.

Monday, February 25, 2008

Eternal is set in the same universe as Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007), featuring different main characters and building on an overarching conflict in the fictional world.

Globally, I had been asked to further underscore the evolving relationship between my two alternating point-of-view characters and the back story of one of them.

With dynamics like that, insights often come to me at, say, 3 a.m. Check out the photo above of my nightstand. I keep a hard copy of the manuscript close (so it will continue to bleed into my brain) along with my little notebook, my laptop (in case electronic vibes are stronger than print), as well as a red pen, a pad of Post-It notes, and a little flashlight. What you see here is the morning-after result of one night's scribbles.

Beyond that, much of my attention went to scene-by-scene smoothing for language and logic. I've previously shifted the timeline twice, so I triple checked that and clipped one unnecessary day. I also reorganized the flow of a few scenes and considered each word choice for impact.

One challenge that I've been aware of throughout the writing of this novel is that it's my first full-length book with a male (albeit in this case alternating) point of view. I've been working up to writing cross-gender for a while.

Having already published Tantalize, of late I've had an opportunity to speak and correspond with a lot of YA readers. I've made a point of asking about depictions of boys. Based on my anecdotal experience, with the traditional caveat about generalizations...

It seems that some boys don't believe most books by women (or, for that matter, many men) show them as they are and that, furthermore, YA lit overall has a feminine feel. This sometimes alienates them to varying degrees.

Girls, on the other hand, are just fine with that "feminine feel." When asked, many will say that they have quite enough of real-life boy attitudes/behavior to deal with, thank you. They much prefer boys in books to be the way they wish their real-life counterparts were.

So, what does that mean (other than the fact that it's impossible to please everyone)?

I'd bet the majority of my readers are girls. But I get enough of a response from guys to know they're a significant part of my audience, too. I also have to wonder if the leanings of adults in youth literature mirror their younger gender counterparts. If so, that becomes a gatekeeper issue.

It's interesting! An intriguing topic in the greater conversation of books. Certainly, authors should be aware of any gender biases in the body of literature.

But as a writer, how do I apply all this?

I keep in mind that I may be inclined to undercut and/or misrepresent my male protagonist's gender-related perspective. I watch out for that. I also watch out for my trying to overcompensate. I listen to Greg when he double takes at a word choice or reaction. I carefully consider my editor's feedback.

But mostly, I stay true to the individual character. Who he is. Where he's coming from. How he feels and why. In this last draft, I made more of an effort to clarify his motivations. Readers will understand his behavior/point of view, even if a few don't always agree with it.

Reading aloud for flow, typos, missing words, and so forth is my last step. The read-aloud is necessary in part because I've already read the manuscript quietly so many times. At this point, I'm prone to reading what I meant for the text to say, not what it actually does. Actually, that's such a big problem that I can't even read the manuscript aloud myself. So, Greg does it for me.

This past weekend, he read Eternal to me in our second-floor reading room (see Greg above with Leo, who's perched on the back of the sofa futon, and grumpy Mercury on the leather ottoman) while I followed along, red pen likewise in hand.

It took about nine hours, spread over Saturday and Sunday, pausing occasionally to double check a previous reference in the manuscript, find a better word, or resolve a question/inconsistency.

Greg began with a glass of water, then switched to hot tea with honey, and finished with a thematically appropriate glass of red wine.

Once we finished, I keyed in changes, which took longer than it might have because I verified the spelling of every proper name in the manuscript along the way. Only one was incorrect.

PM: When I was young, I was full of anticipation each time I opened a book, novel, or comic book. My wish is to pass on that exciting feeling. Everybody has something to bring to build up our society, and I am proud to make children's books my contribution.

In your opinion, what makes a good editor?

PM: A good editor listens to people, makes quick decisions, and is open-minded. The editor wants to pass along the best ideas to the authors and their work. That's the heart of the job!

When you're reading a manuscript for the first time, how long does it take you (approximately how many pages? chapters?) to figure out whether it's something you want to pursue?

PM: When I receive a comic book, the quality of drawing is a key factor, and then I focus on the richness of the world brought by authors. It doesn't take a long time to know if it is an interesting project.

What kinds of things "turn you off" a manuscript right away?

PM: When it's weak (writing, drawing) and when I can't see what it brings.

What are the "realities" of children's publishing?

PM: Difficult and challenging, since the market is so crowded How could we propose something new or with a new point of view or a new object? The more difficult the market, the more relevant and creative we have to be.

What is your favorite thing about being a children's book editor?

PM: To work with authors who keep a strong link with childhood is my favorite thing about being a children's book editor.

Is there a character you met in a book when you were a child that changed your life?

PM: Josephine from the Little Women, Alice Roy (the French Nancy Drew), Sophie from la comtesse de Ségur's Les malheurs de Sophie, and Antigone (by Henri Bauchau). All female characters that show that being a girl can be combined with independence, adventure, wit, and still femininity.

What book(s) are you proudest of having worked on? Why?

PM: I think I'm proud of all the books I worked on. Each one makes me grow in some way. I especially liked working on La vie des Très bêtes because the relationship with the author was so good and because it was absolutely entertaining to receive a few hilarious scenarios each week.

Another book I liked working on is the Encyclo catho. It is the most challenging book I ever worked on: 544 pages with philosophical questions on almost every page. It was interesting to work with another editor on that book because an editor is often the only one in charge of a book, and for such a big and ambitious book, it was a relief--and also challenging--to be two in charge!

Have you worked with both fiction and non-fiction? If so, how do the processes compare? What do you like most (and/or least) about each?

PM: The processes are different. In non-fiction, I like to initiate the project. In fiction or in comic books, I like to develop the writing (or drawing) of an author.

What does the ideal cover letter say?

PM: I am worth it. I'll make you dream if you buy me (or teach you something at least)!

Is there any area on your list you’d like to "grow" at this time?

PM: I am thinking of developing the non-fiction section for little ones (4-8 years old).

How involved in the marketing of the book are you? What is the average marketing budget for a picture book at your house? A YA novel? Etc.

PM: Each editor has to be involved in the marketing of the book. In some way, it is "le nerf de la guerre" (how to translate that French sentence...?!)--the nerves of war! War of nerves!

Cynsational Notes

Anita Loughrey writes teacher resources and children's non-fiction. Her books have been published by A&C Black, Hopscotch and Brilliant Publications. She also writes regular features for Writers' Forum in the U.K. about authors and the writing industry. She recently interviewed all 31 speakers for 2008's Bologna Conference.

The SCBWI Bologna 2008 interview series is brought to you by the SCBWI Bologna Biennial Conference in conjunction with Cynsations.

"Brooklyn 1977. April Lundquist lives in Dyker Heights, a neighborhood populated by the Mafia. Three hit men live on her block: Francesco 'Frankie the Crunch' Consiglione, Vincent 'Gorgeous Vinny' Persico, and Salvatore 'Soft Sal' Luciano.

"When Soft Sal approaches April and her best friend, Brandi Rinaldi, for a favor, well...the girls can't refuse.

"But does the favor, along with the crisp hundred-dollar bills that turn up in their school books, mean that April and Brandi are now in with the Mob? Will April be able to get 'protection' for her older brother, Matt, when he makes the big mistake of falling for the daughter of a big crime boss? And will April's connection to Soft Sal bring her closer to Dominick DeMao, bad-boy rocker and heartbreaker?

"Soft Sal, Matt, Dom...in April's neighborhood the guys stir up all the trouble, but April wouldn't have it any other way."

One autographed copy of Brothers, Boyfriends & Other Criminal Minds will be given away--to any Cynsational reader! To enter, email me with your name and address by 10 p.m. CST Feb. 25! Please also type "Brothers, Boyfriends & Other Criminal Minds" in the subject line.

More News & Links

Cartoonist Jeff Smith rocks the world of graphic novels: interview by Linda M. Castellitto from BookPage. Here's a sneak peek: "Librarians and teachers have let me know they are getting reluctant readers to read with Bone. So people can actually see there are benefits to graphic novels, vs. the stigma that always was attached to comics... I knew it wasn't true. I learned to read because of comics." Visit Boneville. Note: As a pre-schooler, I learned to read with comics from the nearest convenience store and picture books from my local public library.

Courtney Sheinmel debuts her official author site. Courtney is the author of My So-Called Family (Simon & Schuster, fall 2008). From the promotional copy: "Leah Hoffman-Ross just moved to New York and she wants her new friends to think she's a typical thirteen-year-old. But Leah has a secret: she doesn't have a father, she has a donor. Before Leah was born, her mother went to Lyon's Reproductive Services and picked Donor 730. Now her mother is married and Leah has a stepfather and a little brother. Her mom thinks that they should be all the family Leah needs. Despite her attempts to fit in and be normal, Leah can't help but feel like something is missing. When she finds the link on the Internet to the Lyon’s Sibling Registry, Leah knows she has to see if she has any half-siblings. And when she discovers that one of the other kids from Donor 730 is a girl her age, Leah will do anything to meet her--even if she has to hide it from everybody else." Courtney also has two additional titles under contract with Simon & Schuster. Visit Courtney's LJ. See Web designer Lisa Firke's story-behind-the site.

Here's a peek at their Feb. 19 interview with Sundee Frazier: "I'm glad to be able to contribute stories that validate the existence of kids growing up in interracial families or who are conscious of their mixed racial heritage."

Here's a peek at their Feb. 22 interview with Coe Booth: "A few people have said I should write more uplifting stories with more upwardly mobile characters. But this is only my first novel, and this one is about one particular boy. It doesn't mean everything I write will be exactly like this. But I also think it's important to write about characters like Tyrell because people like him exist. And young people like Tyrell deserve to have books they can relate to available to them."

The SCBWI Bologna 2008 series is ongoing here at Cynsations! Check back Monday and beyond for more insightful question-and-answer interviews with agents, editors, authors, and illustrators about the U.S. and international youth publishing scene.

My thanks to Jamie, a member of Tantalize Fans Unite! (a reader-created group) at MySpace, for designing a couple of Tantalize-inspired book trailers. Jamie is age 14 and hails from Kentucky. She also is a writer. See trailer one (highlighting the transformation aspect) and trailer two, which draws more on the murder mystery.

What is the book or experience that made you want to work in children's literature as a literary agent?

SK: As a teenager, I was a member of a book discussion group at the International Youth Library in Munich. Sometimes editors joined us to discuss books, so I got an idea of editorial work and--of course--wanted to become an editor. I decided to study German literature and did my first training at dtv junior in Munich.

I think I always liked stories with a real plot, which at that time (the prime time of Peter Handke, etc.) were too hard to find in literature for adults. Maybe, it was also because there were some authors I loved so much I wanted to stick in the field. As a young woman, I loved fairy tales and fantasy. And I quite soon discovered how nice it was to work with illustrations.

Coincidentally, after having finished my studies--I hold a German and American M.A.--I became a trainee at Beltz & Gelberg's rights' department. I was fascinated by the invisible literary good "rights" and the whole copyright system.

Later on, I started scouting and translating for Beltz & Gelberg and other companies, wrote for newspapers and became the first administrator of FILU, a self-organized illustrators' convention/agency.

After a five-year intermezzo as head editor of Rotfuchs, the children's book list of Rowohlt's, I was more than tired of the stress and the declining liberties in a marketing-oriented company.

I wanted to continue working profoundly with my authors and illustrators. I wanted to create books that turned out brilliant because of the serious work put in. I wanted to have the possibility to develop a project before it was killed by narrow-minded sales people.

So I decided to become an agent for writers and illustrators, offering rights and package deals at the same time.

How did you get your start as an agent?

SK: For about a year, I thought of the concept of my future agency. I made sure the authors and artists I would like to work with--many of them friends--shared this wish. I invented the name "Auserlesen – Ausgezeichnet," which on the one hand means "Excellent and Exquisite," but also plays with the words reading (lesen) and drawing (zeichnen).

After I quit my job, it took me about half a year to develop up my visual C.I., my website and my first "program." Officially, I started at the Frankfurt Book Fair in 2002. I offered some novels and tried to find jobs for my illustrators. As a give-away, I had produced stamps with little sample of the artists' work and quotes of the texts. These stamps continue to be my trademark even today.

I worked at home and was a one-woman show for one year. Luckily, my second year was so successful due to a big job by VW that I could move into an office I share with a graphic design company. Today, I have a steady freelance assistant for two days a week and occasional trainees.

What kinds of things "turn you off" a manuscript right away?

SK: People being too bold, too demanding, referring too much to their so-impressed spouses and kids... People who can't write one halfway floating sentence.

From an agent's point of view, what are the "realities"’ of children's book publishing?

SK: It's a tough business, but still it is not as tough as the general book market. I am frustrated about the uniformity of the market, but, luckily, again and again thrilled by great and unusual books.

Generally, I have the feeling children's book editors are a bit nicer, but also more dogmatic than other editors. They love to dictate to authors and illustrators what to produce exactly, seldom there is respect for their artistic liberty. Other realities? Little money and slow decisions.

What was the easiest book to sell and why?

SK: Internationally, the books of Franziska Biermann to Korea: Because her book, Mr. Fox Likes Books, is so successful there! In Germany, the novel, Mimus by Lilli Thal--outstanding novels always find more than one publisher interested--and the Christmas song book, Am Weihnachtsbaume, because of the unique concept. Both nationally and internationally, Antje Damm's book, What Is This?, is very popular.

Do you get involved with the marketing aspect of the book?

SK: I try to; it's very important, but sometimes it's hard because of my lack of time and/or the publisher's unwillingness. In any case, I always try to maintain my good relations with the media that prove to be so helpful again and again.

Do you specialize in any particular genre and/or are you looking for anything in particular at the moment?

SK: High-quality books and original activity books.

In Germany, there seem to be more illustrations again in the adult market, after a long period of photographed covers.

For the first time, I did a bridge between a magazine I work with and the book market (I published a book under the magazine's label).

What are publishers telling you about the market and what they’d like to see?

SK: Well, what do publishers do? They complain. And actually I think the market has got tougher. Especially as picture books have such small print runs. Books live less long, as the market is obsessed by bestsellers. So publishers love seeing something that "looks like..." If you offer something out-of-the-way, it needs to be outstanding. Many publishers (or is it just a few?) still love books, love to be amazed, love to believe in their works. And then, it's fun to show them something...

Cynsational Notes

Anita Loughrey writes teacher resources and children's non-fiction. Her books have been published by A&C Black, Hopscotch and Brilliant Publications. She also writes regular features for Writers' Forum in the U.K. about authors and the writing industry. She recently interviewed all 31 speakers for 2008's Bologna Conference.

The SCBWI Bologna 2008 interview series is brought to you by the SCBWI Bologna Biennial Conference in conjunction with Cynsations.

Sale! February Only!

About

New York Times & Publishers Weekly best-selling, award-winning author the Tantalize series, the Feral series and other critically acclaimed fiction for young readers. She/her. MFA Faculty, Vermont College of Fine Arts. Board member, We Need Diverse Books. Ohonvyetv!

Intern

Intern

Robin Galbraith holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts.

Intern

Kate Pentecost holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She is the YA author of Elysium Girls (Hyperion, winter 2020). Kate is represented by Sara Crowe of Pippin Properties.